CiHM 
Microfiche 


(IMonographs) 


ICIVIH 

Collection  de 

microfiches 

(monographies) 


ImI 


Canadian  Inatituta  for  Hiatorical  Microraproductiona  /  Inatitut  Canadian  da  microraproductiona  Matoriquaa 


Technical  and  Bibliographic  Notes  /  Notes  techniques  et  blblfographiques 


Tht  InstHule  has  attempted  to  obtain  the  best  original 
cop^'  avaOable  for  filming.  Features  of  this  copy  which 
may  be  bibliographically  uHqut,  which  may  alter  wjf  of 
the  Images  in  the  reproduction,  or  which  may 
significantly  change  the  usual  method  of  filming  are 
checked  below. 


Cc'.jred  covers/ 
Couverture  de  couteur 


□ 

□ Covers  damaged  / 
Couverture  endowmag^e 

□ Covers  restored  and/or  laminated  / 
Couveilure  restaurie  ctfeu  peRcuMe 

Cover  title  missing  /  Le  titre  de  couverture  manque 

Cotouied  maps  /  Cartes  gtegiapNques  en  couieur 


Coloured  ink  (i.e.  other  than  blue  or  l^ck)  / 


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Eima  de  couleur  (Le.  aiAa  qua  bieue  ou  n^) 

□ Coloured  plates  andAor  Hhislratlons  / 
Planches  et/ou  nustrattoni  en  couicur 

□ Bound  with  other  material  / 
ReM  avec  d'aulres  documerds 


□ 
□ 


□ 


Only  edilton  avaHable  / 
Seute  Mitton  dispcnijhi 

Tipht  binding  may  caim  shadows  or  distortim  almg 
inierior  margin  /  La  reliure  serrie  peut  causer  de 
I'ombre  ou  de  la  distorsion  le  long  de  la  marge 
int^rieure. 

Blank  leaves  added  during  restorations  may  appear 
within  the  text.  Whenever  possMe.  these  have  been 
omitted  from  filming  /  Use  peut  que  cerlaines  pages 
blanches  ajouties  lors  d'une  restauration 
apparaissent  dana  ia  texia.  mats,  iorsqua  cela  tftaR 
poaaMa.  caa  pages  nront  pas  «li  fOmtea. 


L'Insiitut  a  mterofilmd  la  meilleur  exemplaira  qu'il  lui  a 
M  possible  de  se  procurer.  Lea  dMalla  da  cat  axenv 
plaira  qui  aont  peiAritie  unk^ues  du  point  de  vue  bibii* 
ographlque.  qui  peuvent  modifier  una  image  raproduHe, 
ou  qui  peuvent  exiger  una  modification  dana  la  mMio- 
da  noimaia  da  fiimaga  aoni  indiqufe  dnSaaaoua. 

I    I  Coloured  pages/ Pages  decouleur 

I    I  pi^a  damaged /Pagaaandorwnagtea 

□ Images  restored  and/or  laminated  / 
Pagaa  rattawt:*  M/bu  palHculAea 

0 Pages  discoloured,  stained  or  foxed  / 
Pagaa  d^eoloiiaa,  tachat^as  ou  piquiaa 

[    I  Pagaa dalachad/Pagaadtochtea 

Showthrough/ Transparence 


□ 
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OuatHy  of  print  varies  / 
Quality  in^gale  de  I'impression 

Includes  supplementary  material  / 
Cornprend  du  materiel  suppl^menlaire 

Pages  wholly  or  partially  obscured  by  errata  slips, 
tissues,  etc.,  have  been  refiimed  to  ensure  the  best 
possible  image  /  Lea  pages  totalement  ou 
paitiellement  obscurcies  par  un  feuillet  d'errata,  une 
pelure,  etc..  ont  M  film^es  h  nouveau  de  fagon  k 
obter^  meMeura  image  poasbia. 

Opposing  pages  with  varying  colouration  or 
(Sso^ouratiww  are  fflmed  twice  to  ensure  the  best 
possible  image  /  Les  pages  s'opposant  ayant  des 
colorations  variables  ou  des  decolorations  sont 
ramies  deux  Ms  afin  d'oWerWr  ia  meWeure  imaga 


El 


Addltk}nal  comments  / 
Commentaires  supplimeftolres: 


petiMtfwi  u  M  foii«M<  p.  (tfl6]-m. 


Thtt  ittm  It  tBiMd  M  ih«  rtrfuction  tt\lo  cheeked  below  / 

C«  deewMtitMt  fBin<  au  taim  da  iMuciian  indlqui  cMttsava. 


lOx 


14x 


18x 


22x 


26x 


30x 


o 


kl  I  I  I  I  1X3 


I2x 


lix 


20x 


24x 


28x 


32x 


Th«  copy  filmed  h«r«  has  b—n  r«produc*d  thanks 
to  tha  ganarosity  of: 

Engineering  Sciences  Library* 
Queen's  University 


Ths  imagas  appaaring  hars  ara  tha  bast  quality 
poaaibia  eonsidaring  tha  condition  and  lagibility 
of  tha  original  copy  and  In  kaaping  with  tha 
filming  contract  apodfieatlona. 


Original  copies  in  printad  papar  covers  ara  filmod 
beginning  with  tha  front  cover  and  ending  on 
ti.e  lest  page  with  a  printad  or  INuatrated  impraa- 
sion,  or  the  back  cover  when  eppropriate.  All 
other  original  coplea  are  filmed  beginning  on  the 
first  pege  with  a  printad  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, end  ending  on  the  lest  pege  with  a  printed 
or  Wustrated  Impraealon. 


The  leat  recorded  freme  on  each  microfiche 
shall  contain  tha  symbol  — ^  (meaning  "CON- 
TINUED"), or  tha  symbol  V  (maening  "END"), 
whichever  appllea. 

Mapa,  plates,  charts,  etc..  mey  be  filmed  ot 
different  reduction  reties.  Those  too  large  to  be 
entirely  included  in  one  exposure  ere  filmed 
beginning  in  the  upper  left  hand  corner,  left  to 
right  and  top  to  bottom,  as  many  framee  M 
required.  The  following  diagrama  illustrate  tha 
method: 


L'examplaira  film*  fut  reproduit  grice  A  la 
ginirosit*  da: 

Engineering  Sciences  Ltbrary, 
QuMn's  University 


Las  imeges  suhrantas  ont  M  reproduites  avac  la 

plus  grand  soin.  compta  tanu  da  Is  condition  et 
da  la  nattat*  da  I'axampleire  film*,  et  an 
conformity  avac  lea  eenditiona  du  contrat  da 
filmaga. 

Las  axamplsiras  originaux  dont  la  couverture  en 
pepier  est  imprimis  sent  film«s  en  commencant 
par  la  premier  plot  et  en  terminent  soit  par  la 
darnltra  page  qui  comporta  una  ampreinte 
d'imprassion  ou  d'illustration.  soit  par  la  second 
piet.  sslon  Is  cas.  Tous  lea  autrea  exempieires 
originaux  sent  filmes  an  commandant  par  la 
premlire  page  qui  comporta  une  empreinte 
d'imprassion  ou  d'illustration  at  an  tsrminant  par 
la  darniere  page  qui  comporta  une  telle 
empreinte. 

Un  des  symbolas  suivants  apparaitra  sur  la 
derniare  image  da  chaque  microfiche,  seion  le 
eaa:  le  symbols  — »•  signifie  "A  SUIVRE".  le 
symbole  ▼  signifie  "FIN". 

Les  csrtes.  plenches,  tableaux,  etc..  peuvent  *tre 
filmte  i  des  taux  da  reduction  diffarants. 
Lorsqua  la  document  est  trop  grand  pour  Atre 
reproduit  en  un  seul  clich«.  II  est  film*  i  partir 
da  I'angle  supirieur  gauche,  de  gauche  *  droite. 
et  de  haut  en  bas.  an  pranant  la  nombra 
d'images  nicesseire.  Les  diegrammas  suivants 
ilhistrent  la  mithode. 


1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

MMMOOfV  MOUfnON  TKT  CHART 

(ANSI  and  SO  TfSr  CHAtT  No.  3) 


A 


/>PPUEU  M/GE  Inc 

1653  Easl  Main  Street 

Rochester.  Ne»  York      14t0t  USA 

(716)  *e2  -  0300  -  Phorw 


KqsiMtdlma      Jomuui  or  Om>imt,VA  XII.  Il»  t,  Fihwwy M«wK 


i««4 


CUSPATE  FORELANDS  ALONG  THE 
BAY  OF  QUINTE 


ALFRED  W.  G.  WILSON 


HunsD  AT  ns  tmnrautry  or  ancAso  nunt 


CUSPATE  FORELANDS  ALONG  THE  BAY  OF  QUINTE. 
TAUJC  09  coimim. 

iMTKOOOCnOM— Ths  BAT  07  {^nUTB. 

MOVBMKNTS  0»  TM  WATBSS  W  W«  BAt  <W  QpnTB. 

Carmtt. 
Wares. 

The  Forelands  and  Bars. 

I.  Sand  ipit  below  Bogart'i  dock. 
3.  Gravel  ban  on  Pieton  Bay. 

3.  Terrace  and  bar  near  AUIaim't  wlttrf. 

4.  Prinyer  Cove  spit. 

5.  Pleasant  Point  s^it. 

6.  Fish  Point  spit. 

7.  Amherst  bar. 

8.  Calf  Islmd  loop  bar. 

The  Origin  of  the  V-T«»»acb  and  V-Bar. 
Conclusion. 

INTRODUCTION — THE  BAY  OF  QOIMTB. 

The  flat-lying  limestone  regions  immediately  to  the  north  and 
east  of  the  east  end  of  hakt  Ontario  are  traversed  by  a  number 
of  deep  valleys  with  graded  side  slopes  on  their  lower  courses. 
These  valleys  are  probably  of  preglacial  origin,  and  were  carved 
at  a  time  when  the  relative  altitude  of  the  several  parts  of  the 
Ontario  lowland  was  different  from  what  it  is  at  present.  The 
.  partial  submergence  of  a  number  of  these  valleys,  tributary  to 
one  another,  has  formed  the  water  body  known  as  the  Bay  of 
Qu  nte.  This  bay  extends  from  near  Kingston,  at  the  eut  end 
of  Lake  Ontaurto,  toward  the  southwest  for  a  distance  of  over 
fifty  miles,  and  nowhere  has  it  a  breadth  exceeding  two  miles. 
A  reference  to  the  accompanying  general  map  will  show  its 
remarkable  zigzag  course.'    For  purposes  of  study  it  may  be 

•For  •  liitrwtkf  u  to  Um  probiMe  origin  of  this  valley  lee  "  The  Trent  Rher 
System  and  Oc  St-Lawieaee  OittM."A«AM»  ^O*  Gnl^ktl  S*€ittf  ^ Mmim, 
Vol.  XV. 

to6 


t08 


ALTMBD  W.  G.  WtLSON 


divided  into  three  part» :  the  Trenton-Desoronto  section,  trend- 
ing a  little  north  of  cast ;  ^  Detoironto-ncton  MCtion,  trending 
to  the  weit  of  south ;  and  ^  nctott^KfaqFrton  section,  tren^ig 

nearly  northeast. 

The  upper  section  is  comparatively  shallow ;  for  the  most  part 
the  shores  are  rocky;  and  no  chwMteristic  cuspate  forelands 
have  been  noted  along  them. 

The  middle  section,  sometimes  known  as  the  Nine  Mile 
Reach,  has  much  deeper  water,  and  the  valley  sides  are  steep, 
often  inaccessible  clififo  of  Trenton  limestone.  The  maxinrom 
relief  is  about  185  feet.  Much  of  the  shore  is  rocky,  but  along 
the  east  side  there  are,  in  places,  small  amounts  of  modified  drift 
lying  between  the  water's  edge  and  the  front  of  the  adjacent 
escarpment.  In  one  place,  a  short  distance  below  Bogart's  dock, 
shore  drift  derived  from  this  material  has  formed  a  mall  fore- 
land of  fine  sand  which  resembles  the  V  terrace  with  the  rimming 
bars  which  Gilbert  describes  as  occurring  on  the  shores  of  Lake 
Bonneville.  On  the  west  side  of  Picton  Bay  there  are  also  two 
small  spurs  of  shore  drift  which  seem  to  be  associated  with  taltm 
cones  from  the  face  of  the  cliff. 

Along  the  third  section  of  the  bay  there  are  four  excellent 
examples  of  the  cuspate  foreland  and  one  long  .flying  spit.  Some 
of  these  oupate  forelands  have  a  remarkably  close  resemblance 
to  the  V  terraces  and  V  bars  of  Lake  Bonneville.  Parts  of  the 
shores  of  this  section  of  the  bay  are  also  rocky,  but  the  amount 
of  drift,  both  till  and  stratified  material,  is  greater  than  else- 
where. Off  the  west  end  of  Amherst  Island  the  water  has  its 
maximum  depth  of  230  feet.  The  valley  reaches  its  maximum 
relief  of  284  feet  near  Glenora.  The  south  shore  is  bordered  by 
the  steep  escarpment  of  a  cuesU  which  rises  i^out  200  feet 
above  water  level  near  Glenora.  The  height  gradually  decreases 
eastward,  and  in  Amherst  Island  it  is  only  about  50  feet.  The 
north  shore  rises  gently  inland.  On  the  south  shore  rock 
exposures  are  numerous;  on  the  north  shore  glacial  drift  fre- 
quently occurs,  bed-rock  less  often.  Of  the  four  cuspate  fore- 
lands to  be  described,  three  occur  on  the  south  shore;  the  flying 
spit  is  located  at  the  extreme  eastern  end  of  Amherst  Island, 
adso  on  the  south  side  of  the  bay. 


CUSHATS  FtUtMLANM  AT  BAY  OF  QUINTE 


109 


The  material  whidi  forms  the  loose  debris  of  the  shore  is  in 
part  derivml  from  the  waatiag  of  the  cliffi,  in  pwtl^  the  gla- 
cial deposits.  The  material  which  forms  the  tingle  spit  which 
occurs  on  the  east  tide  of  the  middle  section,  and  also  that  of 
tb«  ipit  which  occurs  on  the  north  tide  of  the  eastern  section  of 
the  bay,  teem  to  be  wholly  of  glacial  origin.  The  matoriak  of 
the  three  forelands  and  the  flyinjf  spit  which  occur  along  the 
south  side  of  the  eattern  section  of  the  bay  are  largely  derived 
from  the  bed-rock  where  it  outcrops  along  the  shore,  but  there 
is  a  d%ht  admixture  of  gravels  derived  frma  the  glacial  defMsits. 

MOVENBim  or  THE  WATBM  or  THB  BAY  OF  QUINTE. 

Qimtas. — Before  describiag  each  of  the  ipits  in  detail,  and 
discussing  the  question  of  thefa*  origin,  it  is  coosidefed  advisable 
to  say  a  word  about  the  movements  of  the  waters  of  the  bay. 
As  is  well  known,  there  are  no  appreciable  tides  on  the  Great 
Lakes;  hence  tidal  currents  do  aot  enter  as  a  factmr  ia  the  dis- 
tribution of  shore  waste.  The  volume  of  water  d^harged  by 
tributary  streams  into  the  upper  part  of  this  bay  is  considerable, 
but  its  ratio  to  the  total  amount  of  water  in  the  bay  is  so  small 
that  no  apprcdaUe  ontiowiag  currenrs  are  set  up.  It  is  alto- 
^gether  doubtful  that  any  portion  of  the  oay  water  below  Deso- 
ronto  has  a  nomial  current  fr<wii  this  oune  of  over  a  naile  per 
day. 

Tte  seiches  of  Lake  Ontario  periodically  affect  the  height  of 
the  water  of  Kingston.  Accurate  data  are  not  at  hand  to  permit 
of  any  statement  of  their  exact  periodicity,  but  by  calculation 
it  should  be  about  sixteen  hours  between  wave-crests.  The  change 
at  Kingston  oMiaarily  does  not  exceed  a  foot  and  a  half,  except 
during  and  after  exceptional  storms,  when  it  is  much  greater. 
The  water  that  is  backed  into  the  bay  at  the  time  the  crest  of  the 
seiche-wave  is  at  Kingston  must  theoretically  cause  an  oscillatory 
movement  ia  the  bay,  ad  the  crest  and  trough  of  the  seidie- 
wave  travel  up  the  bay.  At  Napanee,  at  the  head  of  the  naviga- 
ble portion  of  the  Napanee  River,  about  seven  miles  above 
I^oronto,  this  seiche-wave  often  makes  a  difference  in  water 
level  ^  jdb(mt  3  fie^.    Hoe.  bowevor,  the  water  li  hacked 


110 


ALPMgD  m  a.  WtLSON 


isto  a  Mrrow  futMl-tflMped  openhif .  Out  on  Um  opM  tey 
vary  slight  dhangcs  in  leiwl  art  occasionally  noticeable,  but  no 

records  of  their  amounts  are  available.  It  may,  however,  be 
stated  that  they  are  very  slight,  and  at  no  time,  except  at  the 
upper  part  of  the  Napeaee  eetuary  has  the  writer  been  able  to 
determine  the  existence  of  any  noticeable  current  due  to  this 
cause.  It  may  be  stated  that  the  currents  in  the  bay  produced 
by  this  cause  ar;  not  capable  themselves  of  transporting  any 
of  the  material  which  is  moved  along  the  bay  shore.  It  to  true 
that  they  may  slightly  accelerate  or  retard  the  currents  which 
are  oncerncd  in  the  active  transportation,  but  they  are  much 
too  weak  to  be  in  any  way  considered  as  active  and  effective 
agents  in  transportation.  Where  they  have  been  observed  at 
their  maximum  the  water  is  perfectly  clear,  although  the  bottom 
is  covered  with  a  fine  mud  which  settles  rapidly  when  stirred. 

Approximate  estimates  as  to  the  strength  and  importance  of 
the  seiche  currents  can  also  be  made  at  the  Mnrray  Canal.  TMs 
canal  is  four  miles  in  length  and  connects  the  upper  end  of  the 
bay  with  Presqu'lsle  Bay,  this  latter  bay  connecting  directly 
with  the  open  lake.  The  crest  of  the  seiche  reaches  Presqu'* 
Isle  Bay  soow  hours  before  it  reaches  Kingston.  CoMeqnest 
on  the  rising  of  the  waters  at  Presqu'lsle  Bay  a  current  sets  in  ' 
eastward  through  the  canal  to  the  head  of  the  Bay  of  Quinte. 
Some  hours  later  the  crest  of  the  wave  advancing  from  the 
Kingston  end  of  the  bay,  havii^  had  about  i  lO  miles  farther  to 
travel,  reaches  the  head  of  the  bay,  and  occasionally  may  start  a 
current  through  the  canal  in  the  opposite  direction.  Unfortu- 
nately,  it  has  not  been  possible  to  carry  on  simultaneous 
obsWvations  at  several  points  on  the  bay,  nor  al  any  wtyeiax 
continuously  for  a  long  enough  period  to  establish  the  time  rela- 
tions of  these  oscillations.  The  existence  of  the  currents  through  * 
the  canal  has  been  established.  These  currents  in  the  canal  are 
farther  complicated  by  wind^action  which  generates  surfan  onr- 
rents.  From  observations  made  during  periods  of  calm  weather 
the  author  would  infer  that  the  current  to  be  attributed  to  the 
seiche  alone  rarely  exceeds  five  miles  per  day.  It  must  be  noted 
that  until  careful  quantitative  obeervaHom  are  flM^  tliere  can  be 


CWATt  Jm  AT  BAY  OF  QVtNTM 


III 


BO  dcAtlitC  itAlCfQMlti  Cof  CVM  dwlMg  CSllB  wmtlMr  IIm  HOflMB- 

tum  of  wind-generated  currents  causes  thcni  to  contiatit  for  » 
considerable  period,  and  it  ia  difficult  to  distinguish  positively 
between  these  residual  currents  and  the  true  seiche  current. 

In  Um  i^MMe  ol  Mcwnttt  rtMrvatioat  ^  tkt  tknt  of  owfi- 
lation  of  the  seiche,  we  have  no  means  of  knowing  whether  Um 
crest  of  one  wave  starts  the  currents  through  the  canal  from  o. 
direction  at  the  time  when  the  trough  of  another  is  at  the 
opposite  «ml  of  Uie  c.^;  ia  otlicr  words,  we  do  Mt  know 
whether  the  current  lerkMUcally  reaches  its  greatest  possible 
maximum  value.  Assuming  a  mean  depth  in  Lake  Ontario  of 
65  feet,  and  nuiking  some  allowance  for  retardation  of  the 
•dvaaee  of  tiM  wsve-crat  op  tk«  nwrow  boy.  •  cntcttlalkMi  <rf 
the  time  of  oscillatior.  of  the  seiche  along  the  line  of  direction  of 
the  most  prevalent  storms  suggests  that  the  periodicity  of 
coincidence  of  crest  and  hollow  at  opposite  ends  of  thr  canal 
will  not  be  the  smro  as  the  period  of  tlM  seielie. 

The  mean  depth  uf  the  canal  is  11  feet;  the  breadth  at  the 
bottom,  80  feet;  the  breadth  of  the  water  surface,  125  feet.  It 
may  be  inferred  from  the  small  volume  of  water  moved  through 
the  canal  by  the  seiche  current  that  ia  the  much  bioadtf,  deeper 
bay  the  actual  curmits  geaeratcd  by  the  seidtt  oscUlitfion  nmtt 
be  very  slight. 

Waves. — ^The  effective  agents  in  the  transportation  the 
shore  debris  are  wind>waves,  aad  the  loiqfshore  curreats  wh^ 
are  associated  with  them.  The  size  of  the  material  transported 
and  the  rate  at  which  it  travels  must  ne  -arily  de]  .vl  upon  the 
strength  of  the  waves ;  these  in  turn  depe.  d  upon  wmd  velocity, 
aad,  in  the  Bay  of  Quinte,  upon  wind  direction.  Observations 
which  bavi»  extended  over  a  considerable  period  have  shown  that 
resultant  effective  transportation  along  the  shores  of  the  Great 
Lakes  depends  in  part  upon  the  direction  of  the  most  prevalent 
winds,  ia  part  upon  the  length  of  the  str^h  %f  <^}en  water 
across  which  the  acting  wind  has  come.  The  larger  storms 
usually  determine  the  resultant  direction  of  transportation.  Now, 
in  the  case  of  the  Bay  of  Quinte,  the  steep  sides  of  the  valley  in 
which  the  waters  of  the  bay  lie  so  giddes  and  OMfrda  the  winds 


113 


ALFRED  W.  G.  Wil^ON 


that  we  find  that  the  efficient  wave  and  wave-current  work  in 
shore  transportation  is  done  by  those  winds  whose  direction  con- 
forms nearly  with  the  axial  direction  of  the  several  sections  of 
the  bay.  The  narrowness  of  the  bay,  coupled  with  the  depth  of 
the  valley,  is  such  that  even  violent  storms  blowing  across  it  can 
do  less  efficient  work  than  is  done  by  the  much  gentler  local 
breezes  blowing  up  or  down  the  bay. 

In  this  locality  the  prevailing  direction  of  the  wind  during 
the  summer  is  from  the  southwest ;  but,  in  spite  of  this,  it  is 
found  that,  because  of  the  considerations  to  be  noted  below, 
there  is  virtually  no  continuous  transportation  eastward  except 
along  parts  of  the  lower  portion  below  the  Upper  Gap.  There 
seems  rather  to  be  a  constant  oscillation  to  and  fro.  Because  of 
the  shape  of  the  bay  and  its  position  the  directions  from  which 
efficient  winds  and  their  accompanying  waves  can  come  are  the 
northeast  and  the  southwest. 

The  material  which  forms  the  forelands  varies  from  fine 
sand  in  one  example  to  large  rock  plates  weighing  over  four 
pounds  each.  All  the  spits  but  one  are  built  of  coarse  and  fine 
gravel  or  shingle.  In  most  cases  the  material  is  aloK»t  all  so 
coarse  that  its  transportation  must  be  attributed  to  the  wave 
itself,  rather  than  to  the  action  of  any  longshore  current  during 
the  intervals  that  the  wave  may  have  raised'  it  off  the  bottom, 
though  no  doubt  these  currents  assist  in  that  transportation  to  % 
small  extent.  It  \z  'ijved  in  part  by  rolling  along  the  bottom, 
but  even  some  of  the  largest  fragments  are  frequently  lifted  clear 
of  the  bottom  and  carried  along  with  the  wave.  The  .shape  of 
the  oUong  or  rhomboidal  plates  (rarely  over  an  inch  thick, 
and  with  an  area  on  the  flat  side,  varying  from  ten  to  thirty 
square  inches)  materially  facilitates  this  mode  of  tran^rtation. 

THE  POKBLAMDS  AND  BARS. 

I.  Sand  Spit  below  Bogarts  dock. — ^This  is  a  small  spit  which 
consists  wholly  of  fine  sands  derived  from  the  adjacent  cliff  cut 
in  modified  drift.  The  spit  measures  about  245  feet  across  the 
base  and  extends  about  100  feet  out  from  the  shore  line.  The 
normal  width  of  the  beach  betweea  the  cliff  front  and  the  water 


CVSPA TE  FORMLANDS  AT  BAY  OF  QU/NTE        1 1 3 

is  about  ten  feet.  In  its  present  attitude  the  axis  of  the  spit 
Sacliflies  toward  the  southwest  or  slightly  down  the  bay.   A  ref> 

erence  to  the  accompanying  sketch  plan  will  show  the  present 
existing  conditions.  There  is  a  central  triangular  terrace  at 
wat«r  level,  marshy,  but  filling  with  sand  which  drifts  in  or  is 
washed  in  by  rains  or  waves.  Border!^  this  are  two  distinct 
sand  ridges  rising  about  2  feet  above  water-level.  The  outer 
ridge  has  impended  a  small  amount  of  water  between  itself  and 
the  inner  ridge.  A  third  ridge  has  been  b^n  on  the  outside  of 
these  two. 

Referring  to  the  general  map,  it  will  be  seen  that  effective 


Fia  ».— Snail  taad  tfilL  Mow  BogMft  dock,  Jiuw  i,  1903. 


transportation  must  always  be  by  winds  blowing  nearly  parallel 
to  tite  axu  of  die  middle  section  of  the  bay.  The  present  shme 
line,  both  above  and  below,  is  certainly  just  as*  irr^pilar  as  it  is 
here — it  would  be  described  as  slightly  wavy.  There  is  no 
stream  discharging  near  here,  and  there  is  no  evidence  of  a  local 
lan^p  havif^  modified  the  shore  line  in  such  a  way  as  to  cause 
the  beginning  of  the  building  of  the  spit  at  this  point.  In  the 
field  it  was  at  first  very  difficult  to  see  in  this  case  why  it  should 
have  happened  to  be  formed  here  and  not  at  a  half-dozen  other 
a^wrently  similar  places.  It  happens,  however,  that  there  it  a 
very  slight,  though  noticeable,  difference  in  the  curvature  of  the 
shore  line  at  th!s  place,  and  it  seems  as  if,  under  certain  special 
conditions  of  wind-action  from  the  east  of  north,  the  longshore 
wave  and  wave  eurrests  first  started  to  Iraild  a  terrace  uid  later 
a  bar  outward  from  the  slight  salient  in  the  shore  line  of  this 
point,  and  that  the  same  waves  gradually  turned  the  end  of  this 
free  bar  as  it  reached  deeper  water,  giving  it  its  curved  form,  and 
finally  tying  it  on  to  the  shore  i^n.   This  bar  was  subaequeatly 


114 


ALFRED  W.  G.  WILSON 


modified  and  its  curves  readjusted  by  waves  coining  up  the  bay. 

At  a  later  period  the  second  bar  was  built  outside  the  first,  under 
a  similar  succession  of  conditions,  the  waves  most  actively  con- 
cerned in  its  construction  coming  from  the  southwest.  The 
third  portion  was  in  part  built  during  the  summer  of  1903,  under 
the  action  of  a  series  of  storms  from  the  northeast.  During  the 
process  of  its  building  the  v  aves  cut  into  the  earlier  bars  on  the 
north  side,  producing  the  concave  curve  in  the  shore  line  at  this 
point,  and  depositing  the  eroded  material  nearer  the  apex  of 
the  spit  on  the  far  side  of  the  axis  of  the  initial  form,  pro- 
ducing the  asymmetrical  form  shown  in  the  plan.  If  their  action 
continued  long  enough  under  the  conditions  existing  at  the 
time  the  observations  were  made,  the  bars  would  be  extended  in 
a  very  much  larger  loop  and  would  inclose  a  very  much  larger 
lagoon.  The  rounding  of  the  end  of  thq  spit  and  the  shaping 
of  the  convex  and  concave  cur\'es  on  the  south  side  were  actually 
done  by  the  same  set  of  waves  which  brought  the  material  to 
form  the  outer  cap  of  the  spit.  In  this,  as  in  several  other  cases, 
even  where  the  material  was  coarse  gravel,  the  apex  of  the  spit 
lies  so  far  off-shore  that  waves  curving  obliquely  toward  it  from 
either  direction  will  only  have  their  shoreward  ends  retarded  as 
they  advance  obliquely  on  the  shore.  The  off-shore  portions 
advance  in  the  deeper  water  virtually  4inretarded,  and  thus  the 
wave  front  is  rapidly  curved  around  the  end  of  the  spit.  Mate- 
rial moved  along  a  side  of  the  spit  toward  the  end,  when  dis- 
charged at  the  apex,  will  often  be  carried  around  the  end  by 
the  more  vigorous  unretarded  portion  of  the  same  or  the  next 
following  wave  to  that  which  accomplished  its  final  discharge  at 
the  point. 

This  sand  spit  seems  to  be  rather  an  evanescent  than  a  perma- 
nent feature  of  the  shore.  The  present  spit  is,  from  the  charac- 
ter and  size  of  the  sedges  growing  in  the  lagoon  area,  inferred  to 
be  several  years  old,  probably  not  more  than  five. 

2.  Grand  bars  on  Picton  Bay. —  On  the  west  side  of  Picton  Bay, 
nearly  opposite  the  west  end  of  the  third  section  of  the  Bay  of 
Quinte,  are  two  peculiar  ban  forming  two  distinct  loops,  convex 
outward,  joining  the  shore  by  two  short  concave  curv«a  of  adjust- 


CVSPATE  FORELANDS  AT  BAY  OF  QVrNTE  II5 

ment.  The  beach  between  the  cliff-foot  and  the  water  is  here 
quite  narrow,  usually  less  than  6  feet  in  width.  Above  and  below 
the  two -loop  bars  in  question  the  shore  line  is  sligfaUy  sinuous, 
but  the  beach  is  of  very  uniform  width.  Between  the  two  bars 
there  is  a  stretch  of  78  feet  where  there  is  not  enough  beach 
gravel  to  cover  the  bed-rock,  and  the  cliff  rises  directly  from  the 
s 


Fio.  3. 


water,  here  about  a  foot  in  depth  at  the  shore  line.  The  south 
loop  is  220  fe^t  in  length,  and  the  north  one  280  feet.  The  north 
loop  holds  a  long,  narrow  little  pond  between  it  and  the  old 
shore.  The  low  area  between  the  south  bar  and  the  old  shore 
was  above  present  water  level,  and  was  nearly  filled  with  gravel. 

The  sudden  departure  from  the  normal  conditions  along  this 
shore  to  form  these  bars  is  difficult  of  explanation.    In  the  pres- 


Fio.  4.— ForeUnd  mm  AUtoon't  doek,  M«y  aa,  1903. 


ent  instance  it  is  possible  that  a  small  landslip  from  the  cliff  may 
have  temporarily  changed  the  shore  line  in  such  a  way  as  to 
necessitate  readjustment  by  the  waves.  On  the  other  hand,  they 
may  have  been  formed  under  the  action  of  the  waves  alone  on 
the  normal  shore  line,  under  conditions  referred  to  below  in  a 
general  discussion  of  the  origin  of  the  forms  here  described.  In 
thb  latter  <»se  they  represent  initial  stages  of  a  form  which 
reaches  its  perfection  in  the  V  terrace  and  V  bar. 

3.  Terrace  and  bar  near  Allison's  wharf.— On  the  north  shmv 
of  the  eastern  section  of  the  bay  at  Allison's  dock,  there  is  a  sea- 


Il6  ALFRED  W.  G.  WILSON 

cUff  25  feet  in  height,  cut  in  till.    To  the  east  the  cliff  becomei 
much  lower.    About  half  a  mile  east  of  the  wharf  occur*  one  of 
the  most  perfect  examples  of  the  V-bars.   The  sea-cHff  of  till 
here  has  a  height  a  little  under  5  feet.    There  is  a  narrow  beach 
about  20  feet  in  width.    The  front  of  the  cliff  behind  the  fore- 
land is  more  subdued  than  elsewhere ;  it  is  graded,  and  is  covered 
with  sod.   The  bars  which  inclose  a  triangular  lagoon  arc  built 
of  gravel  and  sand.    The  material  of  the  east  arm  is  chiefly  a 
coarse  gravel ;  that  of  the  west  is  gravel  with  a  much  larger  per- 
centage of  finer  material  and  some  sand.    On  the  inner  side 
there  is  a  small  amount  of  clayey  soil  which  has  gradually  been 
blown  or  washed  into  the  lagoon.    The  bars  are  of  at  least  three 
periods  of  formation.    The  oldest  rises  3.2  feet  above  water  level 
the  next  oldest  4  feet,  and  the  present  one  about  3  feet.  The 
older  beaches  have  been  in  part  cut  off  by  the  newer,  as  shown 
in  the  plan. 

The  inclosed  lagoon  is  triangular  in  outline,  with  rounded 
corners.    The  base  on  the  old  shore  measures  about  210  feet,  the 
apical  distance  along  the  axis  is  about  13s  feet.   The  depth  of 
water  is  about  18  inches,    it  is  more  or  less  grown  over  with 
water  plants  and  grasses.    The  east  arm  of  the  triangle  measures 
144  feet  ;  the  west.  165.    The  apex  of  the  spit  is  rounded  tad  the 
nearly  straight  sides  join  the  shores  with  short  concave  curves  of 
adjustment.   The  east  arm  of  the  bar  is  much  higher  and  wider 
than  the  west  arm,  and  its  outer  eud  has  several  times  been 
truncated  by  stronger  storms  from  the  east.   The  present  form 
of  the  spit  is  thought  to  be  due  to  the  activity  of  the  waves, 
chiefly  from  the  east.    The  western  arm  has  been  straightened 
and  smoothed  off  at  frequent  intervals  by  the  less  violent,  but 
more  consUnt  waves  from  the  southwest.   The  bottom  on  which 
the  terrace  rests  here  slopes  rapidly  downward  under  the  bay. 
the  100-foot  contour  lying  less  than  a  quarter  of  a  mile  off  shore. 

A  reference  to  the  general  map  shows  that  this  spit  is  located 
very  near  one  of  the  most  salient  points  of  the  north  of 
this  section  of  the  bay.  On  the  ground  its  actual  location  is 
about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  to  the  east  of  this  point,  and  hence  it 
is  sheltered  by  the  point  from  the  storms  which  blow  directly 


CUSPA  TE  FORELANDS  AT  RAY  OF  QU/NTE         1 1 7 

down  the  bay  from  the  southwest.  Wav-s  which  travel  up  the 
bay  from  the  east  would  apparently  have  their  maximum  effect  on 
the  beach  at  this  point.  A  little  farther  east  there  is  another 
minor  point,  too  small  to  show  on  the  plan  Beyond  this  toward 
the  large  point  (a  drumlin)  shown  on'the  plan,  about  a  mile  and 
a  quarter  east  of  Allison's  -vharf,  the  shore  debris  is  very  much 
ciMrser.  Both  to  the  west  and  east  the  rawness  of  the  shore 
cliffs  and  the  coarser  beach  debris  show  that  there  is  much  more 
active  erosion  going  on  there  than  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  the 


spit.  Hie  hifereQ<x  there  seems  to  be  that  just  at  this  locality 
we  have  a  region  of  relatively  quiet  water  and  less  activity, 
where  material  eroded  by  the  wavM  acting  alternately  «  cUifermt 
intervals  tends  to  accumulate. 

4 .  Prinyer  C«t>e  sfit. — About  a  mtlr  west  of  Prinyer  Cove  there 
is  a  slight  f  alient  on  the  shore  line  which  is  tipped  by  a  snudl  V 
terrace  and  rimming  bars  inclosing  a  triangular  lagoon.  The 
axis  of  the  spit  lies  nearly  at  right  angles  to  the  trend  of  the 
shore  Uoe.  The  spit  is  97$  feet  to  length  and  measures  abo  :t 
300  feet  across  the  base.  The  sides  are  nearly  symmetrical,  and 
the  inclosing  bars  are  built  of  gravel.  The  inclosed  iagoon  is  in 
part  filled  t,p  with  rank  marsh  vegetation ;  near  the  edges  are 
some  large  trees.  The  apex  of  the  spit  shows  the  lines  of  succes- 
sive additions  on  alternate  sides.  Inside  the  present  beach  only 
one  of  the  earlier  beaches  is  well  preserved.   This  has  teeo  in  part 


Il8 


ALFRED  W.  G.  WILSON 


cut  into  during  the  readjustment  of  curves  when  the  present 
beach  was  built.  The  land  behind  the  shore  is  overlaid  by  a  thin 
sheet  of  till.  It  slopes  gently  bayward,  and  the  inner  margin  of 
the  lagoon  gradually  merges  into  the  mainland.  Both  on  the 
east  and  west  there  is  a  low  cliff  above  the  beach  having  a  height 
of  about  2  feet.  The  cliff  and  beach  that  must  have  exiMed 
behind  the  lagoon  have  long  since  disappeared.  The  grave!  bars 
on  the  sides  rise  about  3  feet  above  water  level.  That  cn  the 
east  is  a  little  larger,  and  consists  of  coarser  material  than  the 
one  on  the  west.  Almost  all  the  gravel  composing  the  ban  is 
derived  from  the  adjacent  bed-rock— a  nodular  thaly  limestone 

of  Trenton  age. 

5.  Pleasant  Point  This  is  the  largest  and  the  most  inter- 

esting of  all  the  forelands  on  the  bay.  The  general  form  of  the 
foreland  is  shown  by  the  accompanying  plan.  The  material  of 
which  it  is  built  is  almost  wholly  gravel.  The  eastern  side  con- 
sists of  very  coarse  shingle  containing  numerous  flat  plates  of  all 
sizes  up  to  three  or  four  pounds  in  weight.  The  west  arm,  on  the 
other  hand,  consists  «ihiefly  of  smaller  rounded  pebbles,  rarely 
over  an  inch  in  diameter,  and  there  is  also  a  certain  amount  of 
fine  gravel  and  sand. 

To  the  west  of  the  foreland  there  is  a  shore  cliff  about  20  feet 
in  height,  of  which  at  least  the  upper  5  feet  are  glacial  till.  The 
base  of  the  cliff  is  shaly  limestone,  and  the  width  of  the  normal 
beach  is  between  6  and  10  feet.  It  is  strewn  with  coarse  cobbles, 
there  being  very  little  fine  material  such  as  is  found  on  the  arm 
of  the  spit  a  few  yards  away.  The  old  cliff  runs  behind  the  spit ; 
twice  it  changes  its  c  irection,  recording  significant  changes  in  the 
growth  of  the  spit.  Its  height  at  the  base  of  the  eastern  arm  is 
only  about  5  feet.  It  continues  as  a  low  bluff  for  some  distance 
to  the  southeast.  The  drift  varies  in  thickness,  but  near  the  sj^t 
its  thickness  is  about  2  feet. 

The  original  foreland  so  far  as  it  can  be  traced,  lay  a  little 
farther  to  the  west  than  the  present  one,  and  was  very  simil«r  in 
shape  and  sixe  to  that  near  Prinyer  Cove.  At  the  present  time 
there  are  seven  distinct  beaches.  Counting  east  -from  the  inner 
triangular  lagoon,  the  first  three  of  the  beach  mounds  or  ridges  each 


CUSPATV  FOKELANDS  AT  BAY  OF  OVINTB 


rise  only  about  a  foot  above  present  water  level.  They  are  nearly 
pBrellel,  and  between  then  we  find  two  loi^,  mrrow  ponda.  Tlie 
fourth  beach,  the  largest  and  highest  of  the  aeries,  extends  nearly 
the  whole  length  of  the  spit.  The  next  two  are  also  of  consider- 
able height  and  breadth,  and  are  best  preserved  near  the  outer 
end.   In  the  readjustment  of  the  curvet  during  the  formation  of 


7io.  6.— Sketch  |dMi  of  Pleasant  Pmnt  Foielaiid,  May  aj,  1903. 

the  seventh  or  modern  beach  the  waves  have  cut  through  the 
sixth  and  fifth,  and  are  now  acting  on  the  fourth  near  its  shore 
end.  On  the  west  side  traces  of  only  one  ancient  beach  could 
be  fmmd  between  the  present  modern  batch  and  the  triangnhur 
lagoon.  It  is  assumed,  in  the  counting,  that  this  is  the  correlative 
of  some  one  or  more  of  the  first  six  of  the  earlier  beaches  found 
on  the  east  side.  Both  the  beaches  on  the  west  side  cut  across 
the  ei^  of  the  first  three  of  the  earlier  batches,  and  the  modem 
one  cuts  across  the  ends  of  the  other  three  as  well.  The  fourth 
beach  on  the  east,  the  highest  and  broadest  }f  the  series,  rises 


lao 


ALFRED  m  G.  WILSON 


about  6  feet  above  present  water  level,  or  at  least  8  feet  above 
the  bottom  of  the  lagoon.    The  beach  on  the  west  is  only  abottt 

2  feet  high,  except  near  the  apex  of  the  spit. 

A  reference  to  the  general  map  will  show  that  immediately  to 
the  east  of  the  point  we  have  a  gap— the  Upper  Gap— in  the 

side  of  the  Bay  of  Qainte 
valley,  through  which 
storm  waves  from  the 
open  lake  cart  have  access 
to  the  bay.  The  waves 
which  will  have  most 
effect  on  the  shore  are 
those  coming  from  a  little 
to  the  east  of  south, 
although  the  waves  of  a 
storm  from  the  east  or 
south  will  also  be  capable 
of  effective  work.  On  the 

Fig.  7.- Sketch  plan  of  about  100  feet  of  the  other  hand,  the  spit  is 
•pex  of  the  Pleasant  Point  spil,  May  at,  1903,  „„„  „  .  . 
riumiBgthedaf,iBgbe«Arid^«Kl,i,ir    exposed  on  the  west 

only  to  waves  traveling 
up  the  bay  before  a  wind  having  a  very  limited  distance  in 
which  to  act.  Hence  we  find  - that  the  larger  waves  from  the 
open  lake  have  been  steadily  carrying  material  around  the 
point,  and  depositing  it  in  the  slfxk,  but  very  deep,  water  behind. 
The  point  of  the  sp.'^  is  now  out  as  far  as  the  70-foot  contour. 
The  much  larger  size  of  these  waves  has  been  the  important  fac- 
tor in  determining  the  coarseness  of  the  material  of  the  eastern 
part  of  the  spit,  in  piling  it  so  high,  in  determining  the'amount 
which  has  been  brought  here,  and  in  causing  the  spit  to  travel 
slowly  eastward.  The  material  which  forms  the  west  arm  is  in 
part  derived  from  that  brought  by  the  bigg-r  waves  to  the  east 
side  and  subsequently  carried  around  the  point,  partly  by  the 
same  system  of  waves  which  brought  it,  but  chiefly  by  the  waves 
coming  up  the  bay  from  the  northeast  at  other  times.  Some  of  it 
is  brought  from  the  shores  to  the  west.  One  record  of  the  changes 
which  take  place  at  the  apex  of  the  beach  under  the  action  of 


CUSPATB  POKBLANDS  AT  BAY  OF  QUINTE 


131 


different  Btorms  is  shown  in  the  accompanying  sketch.  Material 
it  transported  very  rapidly  along  the  eastern  side  of  the  beach, 
in  spite  of  its  coarseness.  Along  the  west  the  travel  seems  to  be 
much  slower  because  of  the  relatively  small  siae  of  the  waves. 


100' 


This  spit  must  be  very  old.  Near 
the  outer  end  of  the  fourth  beach, 
the  highest  of  the  series,  is  an  oak 
tree  sixteen  inches  in  diameter.  This 
beach  and  the  earlier  ones  are 
covered  with  a  thick  grcwth  of  lai^ 
cedars. 

6.  Fish  Point  spit. — ^I'his  spit  is 
not  so  large  nor  so  well  developed  as  the 
oUiers.  The  reasons  for  this  are  twofold: 
first,  on  the  east  the  source  from  which 
material  may  be  drawn  is  only  about  half  a 
mile  of  beach,  .nd  on  the  west  the  distance 
is  mrt  mudi  over  two  miles;  in  the  second 
place,  there  is  almost  no  drift  cover,  and  the 
rocks  here  seem  to  be  a  little  less  shaly  than 
elsewhere,  consequently  the  supply  of  gravel 
is  not  so  abundant.  The  gravel  whidi  occun 
on  the  beaches  on  either  side  of  the  point  is 
very  coarse,  many  of  the  rounded  pebbles 
exceeding  two  inches  in  the  longest  diameter.  Foreland,  M«y  24, 1903 
and  there  are  numerous  burge  plates  up  to  ten  pounds  in  weight. 
The  gnivel  at  the  wpx  is  soMller  than  elsewhere,  that  on  the  east 


Fig.  8.— Fish  Point 


AIFXSD  m  G.  WILSON 


side  probably  a  little  coMwr  than  that  on  the  west.  The  ipit.  as 

a  whole,  resembles  a  cap  which  has  been  built  by  the  gravelf  on 
the  end  of  a  minor  salient  of  the  mainland  by  the  waves  when 
readjusting  the  shore  curves.  The  main  portion  of  the  spit  con- 
litts  of  a  large  irregular  or  wavy  topped  terrace  of  eoane  gravel, 
built  out  in  front  of  the  mainland.  For  the  most  part  the  earlier 
beaches  have  lost  their  individual  identity.  At  the  outer  margin 
several  of  the  later  ones  are  still  persistent,  inclosing  shallow 
lagoons. 

The  spit  was  particularly  interesting  as  it  exhibited  several 
features,  which  are  described  in  detail  because  it  is  thought  that 
their  mode  of  formation  is  an  index  of  the  way  in  which  the  large 
V  bars  and  V  terraces  were  built  up.  The  Mstem  side  of  the 
spit  at  the  water  line  had  a  serrate  margin,  there  being  ten  dis- 
tinct, well-marked  minor  cusps,  which  for  convenience  in  descrip- 
tion may  be  called  cusplets.  Each  of  these  had  a  long,  gently 
curving  shore  line  on  the  side  toward  the  advancing  waves.  The 
free  end  of  the  cusplet  was  joined  to  the  main  shore  by  a  short, 
abrupt,  concave  curve.  Sometimes  the  free  end  of  the  cusplet 
was  drawn  out  into  a  sharp,  well-developed  point.  The  best- 
formed  cusplets  had  a  sharp  mediae  ridge  extending  down  the 
axis,  and  often  prolonged  as  an  apical  spine  at  the  free  end. 
The  outer  slope,  toward  the  water,  was  very  steep,  at  first  almost 
a  straight  line,  and  then  gradually  curving  around  to  the  normal 
subaqueous  beach  cui  ve.  The  iui.  r  slope  was  much  flatter.  The 
curve  of  the  shore  line  t)f  the  individual  cusplets  was  approxi- 
mately adjusted  to  the  curve  cf  advance  of  the  front  of  the  waves 
which  were  building  and  shaping  them  (see  Fig.  9).  The  finer 
gravel  lay  on  the  longer  back  slopes,  the  coarser  iragments,  often 
^mall  plates  rather  than  rounded  pebbles,  were  concentrated  on 
the  steeper  frontal  slopes. 

These  serrations  on  the  side  of  the  spit  seem  to  owe  their 
origin  to  the  attempt  of  the  waves  of  a  particular  series  of 
storms,  coming  from  a  nearly  constant  direction,  to  readjust  the 
curvature  of  the  shore  line  to  the  curvatures  of  their  own  fronts. 
Off  shc.'e  the  waters  are  very  deep,  and  the  shore  line  of  the  bay 
is  yet  in  a  very  young  stage  of  its  development;  consequenUy 


CUSPATE  /rOMMLANDS  AT  MAY  OF  gt^MTf  12$ 

th«  waves  traveling  obliquely  toward  the  shore  are  not  symmet- 
ricallv  aad  tjatetnatirally  reUrded.  The  wave  docs  not  advance 
on  the  shore  parallel  to  its  front  but  comes  up  obliquely  (see 
Fig.  9).  The  result  is  that  the  gravel  was  moved  obliquely  up 
the  itlope  of  the  beach,  and  then  obliquely  downward  with  the 
rettir..  of  the  wave,  but  always  with  a  reniltMit  in  a  diraetloa 


ViO.  9«— Skowiag  tke  raUUkm  nf  the  w«ve-{nmt«  to  the  lemla  oMnia  o{  the 
flMtaidtof  rU  Pdai  FMnd. 

parallel  to  the  shore.    During  the  period  of  t^Mcrvation  the 

dibris  moved  along  the  long  curve  of  the  cusplets  very  rapidly, 
and  then,  when  discharged  into  the  deepest  water  at  the  free  end, 
would  either  fall  at  once  to  the  bottom,  or  might  happen  to  reach 
the  end  just  in  time  to  be  carried  across  the  intervening  space  by 
the  rush  of  the  less  retarded  part  of  the  wave  which  had  not  yet 
reached  shore.  Material  would  thus  be  rolled  along  the  long 
slope  by  the  Invaking  edge  of  the  wave,  but,  when  discharged  at 
the  free  end,  it  was  crftca  bodUy  earried  several  feet  part  the 


134 


ALFKMH  m  a.  WILSON 


tpine  of  the  cusplet  and  up  to  Um  maia  bncb  by  Um  mom  pow* 

erful,  less  retarded  portion  of  the  waves — there  to  be  rolled 
slowly  or  rapidly  along  the  long  slope  of  the  next  cusplet,  where 
the  process  was  repeated. 

The  site  of  the  cusplet  iasome  cases  seemed  to  be  inciMsif, 
but  several  seemed  to  have  reached  a  maximum  stage.  Given  a 
constant  material,  the  limit  of  size  seems  to  depend  upon  the  stM 
of  the  waves  uid  their  periodicity. 

These  little  cusps  are  formed  during  the  period  of  a  siagle 
storm,  ur  scries  of  storms,  when  the  waves  advance  in  an  oblique 
direction  on  a  previously  evenly  curved  shore.  Their  forma- 
tion and  their  symmetrical  arrangement  seem  to  be  due  to 
two  factors.  In  the  first  place,  very  frequently  the  undertow  is 
able  to  carry  material  down  the  slope  of  the  beach  a  little  farther 
than  the  front  of  the  wave  can  move  it  up,  within  certain  limits. 
G>aseqitently,  although  some  of  the  material  moved  up  the  slope 
by  the  front  of  the  wave  lodges,  some  of  it  moves  down  wftk  the 
undertow,  and  a  small  percentage  of  this  latter  material  may 
move  out  beyond  the  zone  at  which  the  next  oncoming  waves 
can  move  it  up  the  beach.  Hence  there  will  be  a  slow  but 
gradual  accumulation  just  beyond  this  line,  which  in  tfane  will 
even  modify  the  direction  of  the  long  shore  currents.  A 
second  and  more  imp^.tant  iactor  in  the  production  of  these 
'^m^ns  along  the  shore  is  the  development  of  nodal  lines  along 

lich  material  tends  to  accumulate.    Where  the  waves  are 

vancing  at  an  angle  to  the  shore  there  will  be  a  number  of 
waves  breaking  at  the  same  time  at  different  points  along  the 
shore.  As  the  spacing  of  the  waves  is  nearly  uQiform,  if  the 
shore  line  were  perfectly  straight,  these  points  of  simuitaneoas 
wave-breaking  would  be  equidistant  from  one  another.  On  a 
curved  shore  the  spacing  will  be  systematic,  but  the  distances 
between  breaking  points  will  not  necessarily  be  equal.  Now,  the 
undertow  which  flows  out  from  one  wave  as  it  breaks  will  inter- 
fere  with  the  advance  of  the  next  following  wave,  if  it  meets  that 
wave  on  that  part  of  the  shore  where  the  orbital  motion  is  nearly 
a  straight  line  up  the  beadu  This  happens  very  frequently 
where  part  of  a  «nve  is  retarded  by  a  ca^^  while  the  ether 


CVSPATM  POMMLANDS  AT  BAY  OF  QU/NTM  Itg 

pMt  puM*  tb«  frwMd  widi  littie  ra&rdttion.  Hm  rasvit  will 

be  a  tendency  for  the  material  moving  down  the  slope  witk  th« 
undertow,  and  up  the  slope  with  the  advancing  wave,  to  be 
dropped  at  a  symmetrically  arranged  series  of  poinU.  The 
obliquely  moving  waves  ete  move  d<brii  along  the  shore  in  Um 
resultant  longshore  direction  of  the  wave  advance. 

The  result  of  the  combined  action  of  these  different  factors 
that  gradually  a  little  bar  is  built  out  from  the  shore  by  which 
the  waves  ettetnpt  to  reedjost  the  cturvaUtre  of  the  Aon  line  to 
•  curvature  appropri  te  to  their  directton  of  advance.  Because 
ol  the  nearly  uniform  spacing  of  the  waves,  these  bars  will  begin 
at  a  number  of  symmetrically  arranged  poinU.  Because  of  the 
normal.  uniforM  slope  of  the  sub«|ueotts  floor,  the  maxfanum 
disUnce  from  shore  at  which  the  undertow  can  materially  inter- 
fere with  the  advance  of  the  next  wave  will  be  located  at  a 
nearly  uniform  dtetaoce  off  the  iniUal  shore  line,  and  this  will 
tend  to  limit  the  sise  of  the  individual  cusplets.  The  site  is  also 
limited  b>  the  distance  between  the  crests  of  the  waves.  The 
building  of  the  cusplets  further  modifies  the  form  of  the  shore 
Ilae,  the  slope  of  the  bottom,  the  direction  of  the  advance  of  the 
wavrs,  and  the  diiectioa  of  the  longshore  currents;  but  with 
waves  of  constant  size  an  equilibrium  will  be  established,  at 
which  time  the  cusplets  will  have  their  maximum  sise.  If  the. 
waves  are  irregular,  cusps  may  not  be  formed  at  '". 

The  same  waves  which  bad  built  the  serrate  mar^n  along 
the  eastern  side  of  this  foreland  had  built  a  small  flying  spit  at 
the  apex.  Between  the  free  end  of  this  small  flying  spit  and 
the  main  beach  a  very  small  A-shaped  point  was  also  gradually 
built  up.  The  wavrs  coming  from  the  east  in  the  direction  indi* 
cated  by  the  arrow  g.  lo)  swung  around  the  point,  giving  it 
the  form  shown  in  .  figure.  The  fronts  of  the  waves  assumed 
theform  <rf  a  series  of  hdicoidal  curves  as  they  swung  around  the 
point  as  if  on  a  pivot.  As  many  as  eight  waves  could  be  counted 
swirling  around  the  west  end  of  the  flying  spit  at  the  same  time, 
the  moving  crests  looking  not  unlike  the  spokes  of  a  gigantic  * 
hodsiKitally  rotating  wheel.  The  rtlaUve  p(»ttions  of  the  succes- 
«ve  wave>6iiiM  are  Aamu  hf  the  dotted  Ifaics  in  the  fifure. 


126  ALFRED  W.  G.  WILSON 

Material  which  had  rounded  the  extreme  tip  of  the  flying  spit  was 

actually  carried  across  the  narrow  water  space  between  the  flying 
spit  and  the  little  conical  point  being  deposited  on  the  outside  of 


\ 

\ 


Fig.  10.— Sketch  plan  of  the  apex  of  Fish  Poiat  Foreland,  May  34, 1903. 


CUSPA TE  FORELANDS  AT  BAY  OF  QUINTE        1 37 

the  cone.  As  each  wave  came  in,  the  water  in  tiie  small  lagoon 
rose  and  fell.   The  oatflowing  current  seemed  to  be  the  control 

which  shaped  the  inner  curves  of  the  cone.  A  little  farther  to  the 
west  the  same  waves  were  increasing  the  size,  rounding  the  ends, 
and  otherwise  modifying  the  two  larger  cusplets  ( Fig.  11),  which, 


Fig.  II.— Two  well  developed  cuspleU  in  the  foreground,  the  apex  of  the  small 
loop  ^i^pMnte  the  bMkgioMid.   Mbtth  iid«  of        Ptobit  Fofrimd. 


ju(%ing  from  their  initial  forms,  had  evidently  been  built  some 
time  before  by  a  storm  Mowing  from  the  west. 

7.  Amherst  bar. — Waves  rolling  into  the  bay  through  the 
lower  gap  from  Lake  Ontario  have  built  a  long  gravel  bar  off  the 
east  end  of  Amherst  Island.  This  bar  runs  nearly  north  from 
the  end  of  the  island  and  is  nearly  two  miles  in  length.  Most 
of  it  is  submerged,  but  near  the  island  a  portion  rises  as  a  sharp 
ridge  several  feet  above  water  level.  The  eastern  end  of 
Amherst  Island  is  low,  and  the  shore  is  rocky.  Most  of  the 
gravel  Imrming  the  bur  has  been  moved  along  the  south  shore  of 


128 


ALFRED  W.  G.  W/LSON 


the  island  by  southwest  storms  off  Lake  Ontario.   The  portion 

of  the  bar  that  is  above  water  level  has  a  peculiar  curved  form, 
due  to  the  many  complex  modifications  which  such  a  bar  may 
undergo  under  the  influence  of  minor  storms.  Some  of  these 
are  well  shown  near  the  free  end  of  that  portion  of  the  bar 
which  rises  above  water  level.  On  the  south  side  of  the  free 
end  we  find  .ivo  large,  well-developed,  south- pointing  cui^ps, 
bounded  by  curves  which  are  concave  lakeward.  These  cusps 
seem  to  owe  this  form  to  the  action  of  waves  advancing  from 
the  southeast  and  the  southwest  at  different  times. 

8.  Calf  Island  loop  bar. — Altiiough  not  in  any  way  associated 
with  the  Hay  of  Quinte,  it  seems  desirable  to  include  in  these 
descriptions  a  reference  to  the  loop  bar  off  the  east  end  of  Calf 
Island.  The  island  lies  about  four  miles  northwest  of  Stony 
Point,  and  half  a  mile  to  the  west  of  Stony  Island.  Storm  waves 
blowing  down  the  lake  naturally  divide  at  the  island  and  pass 
on  either  side  of  it.  Coarse  gravel  derived  from  the  limestone 
rock,  by  which  the  main  island  is  underlaid,  has  been  piled  in 
two  high  ridges,  one  leading  off  from  either  side  of  the  island. 
The  two  unite  in  a  rather  sharp  point  about  350  yards  from  the 
east  end  of  the  rocky  part  of  the  island.  The  crests  of  the  bars 
are  about  9  feet  above  water  level,  and  between  them  is  a  deep, 
narrow  pond.  The  south  bar  is  about  60  feet  wide,  and  has 
equal  slopes  on  either  side ;  the  north  bar  is  a  little  wider  and 
more  irregular. 

Si  nilar  forms  are  to  be  looked  for  off  the  northeast  ends  of 
several  of  the  other  rocky  islands  in  this  part  of  the  lake.  Off 
the  east  end  of  Grenadier  Island  two  long  flying  spits  have 
formed,  inclosing  between  them  a  shallow  bay  known  as  Basin 
Harbor.  This  bay  is  gradually  filling  up.  The  free  ends  of  the 
two  spits  are  curving  toward  each  oth(  r,  ai.d,  given  time  enough, 
we  would  expect  them  to  unite.  In  the  nit:antime,  the  inclosed 
basin  will  be  partly  filled  by  sand  eithei'  washed  in  by  the  waves 
or  blown  in  from  the  bars.  The  outer  slope  of  the  bars  will  still 
have  the  steep  gradients  of  such  forms ;  their  height  will  depend 
upon  the  depth  of  the  adjacent  water.  In  time  there  will  thus 
be  formed  off  Grenadier  Island  a  huge  terrace,  with  running 


CVSPA T£ 'JFOXELANDS  AT  BAY  OF  QUINTE        1 29 


bars,  which  in  form  will  approximate  in  shape  to  the  typical  V- 
terrace  and  V-tNU*. 

THE  ORIOIN  OF  THE  V-TBRRACE  AND  V-BAR. 

Four  of  the  forms  which  have  been  described  in  the  preceding 
paragraphs  agree  very  closely,  both  in  form  and  location,  with 
Gilbert's  description  of  the  type  examples 
in  Lake  Bonneville.' 

In  his  descriptions  of  the  type  examples 
Gilbert  notes  that: 

They  are  built  against  coasts  of  even  outline,  usually 
but  not  always,  upon  slight  nlientt,  and  they  occur 
most  frequently  in  the  long  narrow  arms  of  old 
lakes. 

In  discussing  the  origin  of  the  form  he 
states  : 

In  some  cases  the  two  margins  appear  to  have 
been  determined  by  currents  approaching  the  terrace 
(doubtless  at  different  times)  from  opposite  direc- 
tions ;  and  then  the  terrace  margins  are  concave  out- 
ward, and  their  confluence  is  prolonged  in  a  more  or 
less  irregular  point.  In  most  cases,  however,  the 
shore  drift  appears  to  have  been  carried  by  one  cur- 
rrat  from  the  mainland  along  one  margin  of  the  ter- 
race to  the  apex,  and  by  another  current  along  the 
remaining  side  of  the  terrace  back  to  the  mainland. 
The  contours  are  then  eidier  straight  or  ccmvex. 
The  bars  which  border  the  terraces  he  attrib- 
utes to  a  later  period  during  a  slight  deepen-  j.-,,.  sketch  plan 
ing  of  the  waters  of  the  lake,  after  the  ter-  of  about  500  yards  at  the 
races  had  attained  their  full  size.  While  the  ^"^^  °'  portion  of 
lake  stood  at  the  higher  level,  the  linear  Amherst  Bm  above  w«er 
LI  .    ..  May  35,  1003. 

embankments  were  built  at  the  outer  mar-  Directkm  of  wave  advance 


gms. 


■bowB  by  the  anow. 


The  author's  studies  of  the  forelands  in  the  Bay  of  Quinte 
lead  him  to  suggest  the  following  hypothesis  as  to  the  mode 
of  origin  of  the  forms  here  described.     In  the  first  place, 
it  must  be  noted  that  the  level  of  the  water  in  the  bay  varies 
■  U.  S.  OMiogka}  Swvey,  Fm  Ammmti  Jtt^  1M3-84,  p.  98. 


ALFRED  W.  G.  WILSON 


considerably  with  the  seasons,  being  a  little  higher  in  late  spring 
or  early  summer  than  at  any  other  time.  The  level  of  Lake 
Ontario  also  changes  considerably  during  a  season.  Both  of 
these  factors  may  have  some  bearing  on  the  formation  of  the 
terraces  and  bars.  The  changes  in  level  due  to  the  lai^^  seiche 
waves  must  occasionally  be  even  greater  than  these  seasonal 
changes.  None  of  the  forms  show  any  evidence  which  could  be 
interpreted  as  being  due  to  these  seasonal  or  periodical  changes 
in  level. 

In  a  previous  paragraph  a  detailed  description  was  given  of 
the  process  by  which  small  cusps  were  produced  along  a  shore. 
Under  the  continued  action  of  waves  of  moderate  amplitude  the 
dimensions  of  these  small  forms  would  gradually  increase,  and 
eventually  they  would  reach  a  size  which  could  easily  control 
the  shore  currents  and  wave  direction  of  even  moderate  storms. 
In  the  present  instance  the  bay  is  completely  frozen  over  from 
about  the  middle  of  November  until  the  first  of  May.  During 
the  season  of  open  water  the  only  effective  storms  are  those 
which  chance  to  be  blowing  up  or  down  the  bay.  To  be  effec- 
tive, they  must  have  a  constant  direction,  for  a  considerable 
inteival  of  time.  Hence,  while  moderate  breezes  which  generate 
small  waves  are  frequent,  violent  storms  which  can  modify  the 
work  of  all  previous  lighter  winds  and  waves  are  rare.  When 
they  do  come,  their  first  work  would  be  to  readjust  the  shore 
curves  developed  during  the  previous  interval.  The  chances 
that  they  would  preserve  a  suitable  direction  long  enough  to 
t  ace  the  work  of  the  previous,  more  or  less  contsant,  but  less 
energetic,  storms  are  very  slight.  The  construction  of  the  small 
triangular  terrace  may  in  part  be  attributed  to  the  leveling 
action  of  some  such  storms  as  these.  In  all  observed  cases, 
although  the  terrace  under  the  triangular  lagoon  had  a  slight 
slope  outward,  its  slope  was  not  so  great  as  that  of  the  adjacent 
shore  a  little  distance  on  either  side  of  the  sand  spit ;  from  which 
it  is  inferred  that  there  had  been  some  filling.  Whether  such 
a  process  could  produce  a  very  much  larger  terrace  than  those 
noted  is  uncertain.  In  other  cases  the  portion  of  the  terrace 
included  between  the  bars  may  have  bem  partly  filled  in  by  the 


CUSFA TE  FOJl£LA/ia)S  AT  MA V  OF  QVtNTE        1 3 1 

w»ww  themselvet  after  the  formation  of  the  bars.  Such  a  ter- 
race is  in  course  of  conitruction  off  the  east  end  of  Grenadier 
Island.  A  similar  process  is  causing  a  great  deal  of  inconven- 
ience at  several  harbors  along  the  north  shore  of  Lake  Ontario, 
wiiere  two  artificially  constmcted  bars  in  the  shape  of  piers 
inclose  a  harbor  which  periodically  fills  with  sand  that  has  to  be 
removed  by  dredging. 

In  some  cases  the  inner  lagoon  may  have  been  filled  after 
the  bars  were  formed,  by  ordinary  processes  of  transportation 
which  tend  to  fill  hollows  and  lessen  the  grade  of  steep  slopes. 

The  size  of  the  terrace  would  also  depend  upon  'he  size  of 
the  water  body,  and  upon  the  character  of  the  material.  The 
tendency  will  always  be  for  the  waves  bringing  the  supplies  of 
material  to  heap  this  up  in  the  form  of  a  bar.  In  the  later 
stages,  when  the  accumulation  has  become  considerable,  the 
Urger  storms  would  not  be  able  to  efface  these  bars,  though  they 
will  reshape  them  and  pile  the  material  higher  on  the  outer  mar- 
gin. On  the  outer  side  of  a  bar,  below  water  level,  the  material 
has  a  gentle  slope  to  below  wave  base.  Beyond  this  the  inclina- 
Uon  of  the  front  slope  will  be  the  angle  of  repose  for  material  of 
the  kind.  In  the  case  of  all  the  forms  on  the  Bay  of  Quinte. 
where  the  water  drained  off  it  would  be  found  that  the  forelands 
would  have  steep  frontal  slopes,  with  an  elevation  in  several 
cases  of  about  60  feet.  The  top  would  be  a  nearly  fiat  terrace, 
with  gently  curved  edges,  and  rising  above  it  at  a  little  distance 
from  the  margin  would  be  the  sharply  defined  rimming  bar. 

In  the  smaller  examples  the  same  waves  which  build  the  one 
side  of  the  foreland  carry  material  around  the  end  of  the  spit  and 
distribute  it  for  a  shorter  or  longer  distance,  according  to  their 
size,  on  the  other  side.  On  some  occasions  the  same  waves  may 
shape  both  sides  at  the  same  time,  but  usually  it  is  found  that 
the  adjacent  sides  are  shaped  alternately.  In  some  cases  the 
greater  proportion  of  the  material  comes  from  one  side,  and  its 
redistribution  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  spit  is  effected  by  other 
waves  from  a  different  direction  and  at  another  time.  In  the 
case  of  Point  Pleasant  spit  it  seems  to  be  slowly  shifting  east- 
ward,  as  material  brought  from  the  southeast  accumulates  on 


ALFRED  W.  G.  WtLSOH 


tbat  ti<te.  At  the  same  time  IcM  rafud  erosioii  taking  place  mi 
tte  west  sMe  ttoder  the  action  of  leae  vtolent  waves. 

COMCLUSIOMS. 

In  conclusion,  it  may  be  stated  that  the  forelands  here  described 
serm  to  have  been  built  wholly  by  the  action  of  waves  acting 
either  directly  or  indirectly  in  association  with  longshore  cur- 
rents  which  were  intimately  associated  with  them. 

The  location  of  the  forelands  is  associated  with  some  more  or 
less  salient  feature  of  the  coast  which  has  influenced  the  direc- 
tion of  wave  advance  and  the  course  of  longshore  currents,  and 
has  localised  the  effective  transporting  action  of  both. 

Their  formation  is  due  to  the  control  exercised  on  wind 
direction  and  on  wave  direction  by  the  form  of  the  bay.  The 
form  of  the  forelands  is  due  to  the  peculiar  character  of  the  long, 
narrow  water  body  on  which  they  are  situated,  the  condicicms 
being  such  that  only  certain  classes  of  storms  can  be  effective 
agents  in  the  shore  transportation.  The  immature  character,  and 
consequent  imperfect  adjustments  of  sub-acqueous  portions  of 
the  shore  is  an  important  control  in  wave-work. 

The  V-terrace  and  the  associated  V-bar  upon  it,  in  the  instances 
here  studied,  are  regarded  as  products  of  the  same  agent,  and 
do  not  necessarily  imply  a  change  in  water  level.  The  evidence 
from  Point  Pleasant  spit  implies  that  thov  has  be«i  no  signifi- 
cant change  in  level  during  the  long  period  of  growth  ^  tkp 
greater  part  of  the  spit. 

Alfred  W.  G.  Wilsok. 

DsPARnfKMT  or  Geology, 
McGiU  Univertity,  Montrad. 


